Maryborough–Hervey Bay Road

The road commences as Gympie Road at an intersection with the Bruce Highway (A1) in Tinana. It runs north-east through Tinana before crossing the Mary River and entering Maryborough. It continues to the north-east on Ferry Street, passing exits to Maryborough–Biggenden Road and Maryborough–Cooloola Road.[lower-alpha 1] It turns south-east on Walker Street and north-east on John Street as it passes through the Maryborough CBD. It then turns north on Saltwater Creek Road, where it passes the Maryborough Airport and leaves Maryborough. It passes through the locality of St Helens, crosses Saltwater Creek, and enters Dundathu, where the road name changes to Maryborough–Hervey Bay Road.

From Dundathu it passes through Walliebum and Susan River, where it crosses the Susan River (the watercourse). It then runs between Walligan and Sunshine Acres, where it passes exits to Torbanlea–Pialba Road[lower-alpha 2] and Booral Road[lower-alpha 3] before entering Nikenbah. From there the road runs through to the northern boundary of Urraween, passing the exit to Pialba–Burrum Heads Road,[lower-alpha 4] and then turns east as Boat Harbour Drive. It passes through Scarness and Torquay to Urangan, where it ends at an intersection with Elizabeth Street.

Pastoral leases were taken up in the Fraser Coast Region from 1843, and European settlement of what is now Maryborough began in 1847. It was declared a port of entry in 1859 and soon became the major port of entry for immigrants to Queensland. Dalgaroom pastoral run was established in the Hervey Bay area in 1855. Timbergetting began in the district in the mid 1860's, resulting in cleared tracts of land suitable for crop farming. In 1872 Dalgaroom was reduced to 14,000 acres (5,700 ha) and renamed Toogoom.[4][5] In 1887, 11,000 acres (4,500 ha) of land were resumed from the Toogoom pastoral run for the establishment of small farms. The land was offered for selection on 17 April 1887.[6] The opening of new farms on the southern shore of Hervey Bay led to the development of roads in the area.

By the mid 1860's five settlers had taken up leases along the coastal strip from Point Vernon to Urangan. A small village soon developed on each, with wealthy businessmen buying blocks for holiday homes.[7] In 1883 two sugar juice mills opened near Pialba, which became a small town. Due to its central location in the developing community and its suitability as a port for barges transferring smaller items from ship to shore, Pialba became the administrative centre of the Hervey Bay region. This led to the need for a road to transport larger quantities of products and materials to and from Maryborough, and also requests for a railway line. The road was completed quickly, but a railway did not arrive until 1896. Meanwhile, further road improvements had been undertaken.

The railway was extended to Urangan in 1913, and the Urangan pier was completed in 1916.[7] The presence of a deep-water port led to a substantial increase in the number of wheeled vehicles negotiating the streets between Pialba and Urangan. This problem was ultimately solved by the construction of a new road, on open land to the south of the coastal villages, in conjunction with the construction of the Urangan Boat Harbour in the 1960's.[7]

All distances are from Google Maps. The entire road is in the Fraser Coast local government area.

Location	km	mi	Destinations	Notes
Tinana	0	0.0	Bruce Highway – south – Tiaro, Gunalda north – Torbanlea, Childers	South-western end of Maryborough–Hervey Bay Road (State Route 57) Road continues north-east as Gympie Road.
Tinana / Maryborough midpoint	3.2– 3.4	2.0– 2.1	Lamington Bridge over Mary River	Name changes to Ferry Street
Maryborough	4.4	2.7	Maryborough–Biggenden Road – north-west – Bruce Highway and Maryborough West, Brooweena, Biggenden Alice Street to Maryborough–Cooloola Road – south-east – Cooloola
	5.3	3.3	Walker Street – north-west Ferry Street – north-east – Maryborough CBD	Road turns south-east on Walker Street
	5.7	3.5	John Street – south-west Walker Street – south-east – Maryborough CBD	Road turns north-east on John Street
	6.3	3.9	Percy Street – north-west John Street – north-east – Maryborough northern outskirts	Road turns north on Saltwater Creek Road
St Helens / Dundathu midpoint	12.8	8.0	Bridge over Saltwater Creek	Name changes to Maryborough–Hervey Bay Road
Walligan / Sunshine Acres midpoint	27.3	17.0	Torbanlea-Pialba Road – west – Torbanlea Booral Road – north-east – Booral, Urangan, River Heads
Urraween / Eli Waters midpoint	36.6	22.7	Pialba-Burrum Heads Road – west – Burrum Heads
Urraween / Eli Waters / Pialba tripoint	37.2	23.1	Old Maryborough Road – north-east – Pialba	Name changes to Boat Harbour Drive. Road continues east.
Urangan	44.9	27.9	Elizabeth Street – north – Urangan – south – Booral, River Heads Boat Harbour Drive – east – Urangan	North-eastern end of Maryborough-Hervey Bay Road
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Route transition

• List of road routes in Queensland
• List of numbered roads in Queensland
• Hervey Bay (Queensland), the body of water
• Pialba Memorial Cenotaph